California secured a narrow 72-71 victory over Notre Dame in men’s basketball at Haas Pavilion, with Dai Dai Ames playing a decisive role in the final seconds. Ames hit two three-pointers in the last 11 seconds and made the game-winning free throw, finishing with a game-high 23 points. The Bears improved to 13-2 overall and 1-1 in ACC play, while Notre Dame dropped to 10-5 and 1-1.
The Bears overcame a sluggish start, trailing by as much as 12 points in the first half. Notre Dame led at halftime, shooting 40 percent compared to Cal’s 32.1 percent. Cal narrowed the deficit to four by halftime and pulled ahead by seven points with just over seven minutes remaining.
Ames’ performance included a critical four-point play with five seconds left, securing the win for Cal. Chris Bell contributed 15 points and Justin Pippen added 14 for the Bears. Lee Dort collected 11 rebounds. For Notre Dame, Braeden Shrewsberry scored 21 points, Jalen Haralson had 17, Cole Certa finished with 16, and Carson Towt grabbed 15 rebounds.
“Could have gone either way. Two good teams battling, fighting,” said Cal head coach Mark Madsen. “Nothing but respect for Notre Dame and for coach Shrewsberry. They played a great game. I thought we played a great game. An absolute battle.”
Notre Dame started strong with an early run but Cal responded through key plays from Milos Ilic and timely three-pointers from Justin Pippen and TT Carr to keep the margin close at halftime.
In the second half, Cal tied the score twice before taking its first lead since early in the game. The teams traded leads down the stretch until Ames’ late-game heroics decided the outcome.
Cal will now begin its first ACC road trip of the season with games against Virginia on January 7 in Charlottesville and Virginia Tech on January 10 in Blacksburg.
Notable performances included Ames scoring at least ten points for the thirteenth time this season and recording his seventh game with more than twenty points; Bell reached double digits for the twelfth time; Pippen scored at least ten for the eleventh time this year; John Camden continued his streak of making at least one three-pointer per game; Dort notched his fourth double-digit rebounding effort; Ilic set a season-high with seven points; Cal remained undefeated when holding opponents to seventy-two or fewer points; and committed only three turnovers—a season low.
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